Volcanos in Nicaragua
At 5 volcanos in Nicaragua there have been a total of 5 siginificant eruptions over the past 2000 years. Over 2000 people were killed. The worst volcanic eruption in terms of deaths, destroyed houses and financial damages happened on 10/30/1998 at the volcano "San Cristobal". Only here 1620 people died.10 of 12 volcanos in Nicaragua are considered as still active.
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Significant volcanic eruptions in Nicaragua over the past 2000 years
The following list shows all volcanoes of the last 2000 years with significant damage. The column "VEI" stands for the volcano explosivity index, which represents the strength of the eruption from a geological point of view. This takes into account the height and volume of the rocks ejected. The scale ranges from 0-8, with the severity of the outbreak increasing tenfold with each value. For example, a VEI of 1 means that the volcano throws lava and rock masses of 100,000 to 1 million cubic metres up to 1 kilometre high. From VEI 8 a volcano is considered a super volcano. Here, more than 1000 cubic kilometers of tephra are thrown to altitudes of more than 25 kilometers.The highest explosivity index in Nicaragua was reached in the review period at VEI 5 in 1835. The volcano Cosiguina threw tephramasses of at least 1 cubic kilometer over 25 kilometers high. Such a volcano normally only reaches this intensity every 50 years.
| Eruption | Volcano | VEI | Deaths | Total damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10/30/1998 | San Cristobal | 0 | 1620 | |
| 09/27/1996 | Maderas | 0 | 6 | |
| 04/10/1992 | Negro, Cerro | 3 | 11 | |
| 01/20/1835 | Cosiguina | 5 | 0 | |
| 01/01/1570 | Mombacho | 0 | 400 |
All volcanos in Nicaragua
| Volcano | Elevation | Status | Last eruption |
|---|---|---|---|
| Telica | 1010 m | Active | |
| Santa Clara | 834 m | Potentially active | |
| Momotombo | 1191 m | Active | |
| Mombacho | 1345 m | Active | 01/01/1570 |
| Masaya | 635 m | Active | |
| Las Pilas | 938 m | Active | |
| Hervideros de San | 140 m | Solfatara stage | |
| El Viejo | 1745 m | Active | |
| Cosiguina | 859 m | Active | 01/20/1835 |
| Concepcion | 1610 m | Active | |
| Chichigalpa | 1592 m | Solfatara stage | |
| Cerro Negro | 675 m | Active |
These statistics are based on datas from the Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program (GVP), and the Significant Volcanic Eruptions Database of the National Geophysical Data Center (NOAA) / World Data Service (NGDC/WDS) doi:10.7289/V5JW8BSH. Several data have been summarized and translated. Foto taken from National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC, public domain).